[Campaign Diaries is a new series at The American Commons. James Hanink is a candidate running for Governor of California on the American Solidarity Party ticket. Every other week, James will publish a “campaign diary” entry here at The American Commons magazine.]

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The gubernatorial recall ballots are here! September 14th is the due date for their return. The media is perking up. But it’s pretty much just one “spin” that’s getting spun. It goes as follows.

The recall is a Republican end run. It’s goal is to sneak a deep blue yahoo into the top job in a deep red state. Watchout the Trumpies are on the prowl. So vote or else!

Steve Lopez, a columnist for the L.A. Times, is a “thought influencer” who’s decided to spit a bit on the message he spins. The headline of one of his recent columns is “I was dead wrong about Newsom recall circus.” How so, Steve? It turns out that more people are coming to the circus than he’d supposed, including talk show host Larry Elder, another “thought influencer.”

As a warmup for reviewing the sins of Elder, Lopez notes that Newsom opposes capital punishment. So do I, but as a member of a “field of second-stringers” that doesn’t count. Larry Elder, it turns out, once referred to global warming as a “myth.” Not I; it’s a frightening reality. But there’s much more. Elder denies that there’s a glass ceiling for women, opposes any minimum wage, and still has nice things to say about Donald Trump. Not I; I male chauvinism lingers; I support a living wage, and I’m appalled by the former president’s co-opting pro-lifers. The list continues; Elder doesn’t think anyone needs to give a reason not to be vaccinated. Well I do. (I’ve given my conscience grounded reason not to accept the current vaccines.)  

On one point, to be sure, I do agree with Larry Elder. Roe vs. Wade is one of the worst Supreme Court decisions in our history. The Dred Scott decision keeps it company. And there are critical policies on which I disagree with Gavin Newsom. He’s a co-conspirator in Planned Parenthood’s relentless war on the unborn. Not surprisingly he has nothing to say about the University of San Francisco’s hosting “research” that uses “fresh” specimens harvested from aborted babies. Newsom also befriends physician assisted suicide, another California litmus test for enlightened thinkers.

In the ongoing recall debates, I’ve called attention to Newsom’s acquiescence in UC Berkeley’s  contribution to nuclear stockpiling. The University’s Lawrence Livermore Laboratory is a primary research center for the development of nuclear weapons; it boasts of its role in “minding” the nation’s nuclear arsenal. (Who on earth, or more specifically, California, does the PR work for the policy of Mutual Assured Destruction?)

But Steve Lopez doesn’t listen to the debates held by and for “second stringers.” He might even think that we’re a basket of deplorables. Still, I’m hoping that I’ll pick up Sunday’s paper with a headline like “I’m rethinking the recall.” Last Sunday he closed his column with “I’m making no predictions. It’s California and there’s a month to go. Nothing can surprise.”

Still, I’d be surprised if the media’s narrative allows for a rewrite on the recall. But maybe someone will remember that great drama has come from off-off-Broadway venues. Steve Lopez et al., please meet the American Solidarity Party.

You can follow the campaign at:

Dr. James G. Hanink for Governor of California | Facebook
Dr. James G. Hanink for Governor 2021 (https://jameshanink.com)

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Jim Hanink is an independent scholar, albeit more independent than scholarly.